The Management of Water and Land Resources for Agriculture in Chinese Taipei

1. Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation APEC International Conference on Natural Resources and Infrastructure Management for Agriculture Centara Grand at Central World, Bangkok THAILAND, August 6-8, 2012 The Management of Water and Land Resources for Agriculture in Chinese Taipei Chinese Taipei Ho, Yi-Fong Wu, Chii-Reid August 7, 2012

2. Outline • Agricultural statistics ………………………………….3 • Water resources and climate change………………….4 • The management of farmland and irrigation water…8 • Policy for climate change adaption……………………16 • Policy for agricultural food safety………………...…..17 • Conclusions……………………………………………..19

3. Agricultural statistics • Annual budget is about USD8.3 billion (8% of government’s whole budget ) • Annual output of USD4.6 billion (1.8% share of GDP) • 540,000 farmers • Food self-sufficiency ratio is about 32 % ona calorie basis. • Rice (91.9%), wheat (0.0%), soybean (3.8%),vegetable (82.9%), fruit (85.2%), pork (94.8%),beef (6.2%), milk (27.9%).

4. Water resources and climate change 4,000 2,500 • Precipitation in Chinese Taipei is approximately 2,500mm/year, which is 2.5times of the world average. • The amount of annual precipitation per capita ismerely4,000 cubic meters, which is less than one-fifth of the world average.

5. Water resources and climate change

6. Water resources and climate change • Frequency and severity of droughts and floods are increasing. Data source: Water Resources Management and Policy Research Center, 2009

7. Water resources and climate change • 2009.8.8 Typhoon MORAKOT struck southern Chinese Taipei. • 2900 mm (114 inches) in 3 days. • Dead & Missing：769 • Agricultural Loss ：$ 530 million USD • Hydraulic Facility Failures：174 Data source: Water Resources Agency, Chinese Taipei, 2009

8. The management of farmland and irrigation water • 17Irrigation Associations • are obligated to help the • Government carry out • the irrigation undertakings. • Around 380,000 ha (44%of • total arable land) are serviced by the Irrigation • Associations (IAs).

9. The management of farmland and irrigation water To improve the farm production environment and waterlogged soils.Most of the irrigation areas of IAs have been implemented with the practice of farmland consolidation. • To adjust farm land to standard block delineation(W/L= 25m/100m). • Each block may have direct road access, direct irrigation and direct drainage. • Nearly 400,000 ha of farmland in Chinese Taipei have completed land consolidation.

10. The management of farmland and irrigation water To use RS(Remote Sensing), GIS(Geography Information System) technologies for planning the special crop production and marketing areas .

11. The management of farmland and irrigation water All ofthe infrastructure for irrigation affairs includes overall length of about 46,000km of irrigation canals and 24,000 km of drainage ditches.

12. The management of farmland and irrigation water The investment on maintenancefor the infrastructure of irrigation affairs is about USD 280 million every year. Million (USD) year

13. The management of farmland and irrigation water • Decreased by 18% in the last 20 years due to water demands of other sectors. • Transferred to supply the deficits of industrial and domestic sectors during drought events. Irrigation water (billion tons) 13 billion tons in average(1971-1990) Higher level 10.7 billion tons in average(1991-2008) Lower level 1971 1976 1981 1986 1991 1996 2001 2006 Year Data source: Water Resources Agency, MOEA, , Chinese Taipei, 1971-2008

14. The management of farmland and irrigation water

15. The management of farmland and irrigation water • The map of water quality for irrigation.

16. Policy for climate change adaption Strengthening of multi-functional irrigation infrastructure. Improving basic environment for agricultural production. Carrying forward productive, ecologic and living functions of agricultural water resources. Building up national Geographic Information System for irrigation. Upgrading of irrigation management efficiencies. Utilizing the resources of IAs to develop water resources related industries.

17. Policy for agricultural food safety • 1.Raising food self-sufficiency rate and increasing domestic food production and consumption. • Setting the goal of food self-sufficiency rate at 40%. • Activating 140,000 hectares of fallow, and giving priority to encourage the planting of such food grains as feed corn on idle farmland. • Adjusting incentives for crop rotation, increasing crop species for rotation, and guiding the planting of crops to replace imported ones and offering better incentives.

18. Policy for agricultural food safety • 2. Safeguarding water and soil resources required for agricultural product to ensure food security. • Ensuring enough amount of quality farmland for agricultural production. • Giving priority to investing resources in large agricultural productions areas with resources of good quality. • Increasing water regulation and storage facilities for agricultural use, and enhancing the efficiency of the agricultural water resource use. • Maintaining the quality of water for irrigation, establishing water quality monitoring and early warning mechanism, and lowering water and soil pollution risk to ensure the safety of agricultural production.

19. Conclusions • Irrigation affairs involve water and land resources utilization. As efficient irrigation can provide the multiple functions such as food production, livelihood satisfaction, and ecology conservation • It is essential to upgrade the irrigation facilities and to promote the management capacity of irrigation associations for adapting the negative impact of climate change and improving food scarce.  

20. Thanks for Your Attention Crystal –Appreciation (Assigned from – The Promise of Life, Water Knows)